NORTH FORK – The public will have a chance to share their experiences as customers of small rural telephone and internet services with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) on Thursday, Apr. 17 at 4 p.m. at the North Fork Rancheria Community Center.
The CPUC will be hosting a series of meetings to receive public comment on the California High Cost Fund-A (CHCF-A) program, a universal service program that provides funds to small, independent telephone companies to ensure that rural areas receive affordable, safe, reliable and high quality communications services.
The CPUC is examining the program, first established in 1987, and considering how it can more efficiently and effectively meet its stated goals. The key issues include:
• How the program should support deployment of new communications and broadband technologies;
• How the CPUC should decide what rates are reasonable for rural customers;
• How support for rural telephone companies should change when looking at other state and federal funding sources; and
• Whether, and if so how, to open rural telephone company areas to more competitive choices.
The purpose of these Public Participation Hearings (PPH) is to hear from customers of small telephone companies about their experience with telephone and Internet services in their area. Are they affordable and high quality? Do they meet the needs of the community?
The meeting times and locations are listed below and the public is invited to attend any of the meetings. More information about the ongoing proceeding and the proposals under consideration is available on the CPUC website.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION HEARINGS (PPH) – LOCATIONS AND DATES
April 17, 2014 – 4:00 pm
North Fork Rancheria Community Center – 56901 Kunugib, North Fork, CA 93643
April 21, 2014 – 4:00 pm
Jackson Rancheria Casino Resort – 12222 New York Ranch Road, Jackson, CA 95642
May 8, 2014 – 4:00 pm
Holiday Inn Express – Yreka Big Meeting Room – 707 Montague Road, Yreka, CA 96097
ABOUT PUBLIC PARTICIPATION HEARINGS
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) would like to hear from you. The CPUC will hold local PPHs at the time and dates listed above. These hearings will be your opportunity to provide your comments to the assigned Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) in Rulemaking R.11-11-007.
The hearing will be facilitated by a CPUC ALJ. The ALJ will consider all public comments in this proposed application. All public comments from this PPH will be included in the formal record of this case and become public record. The hearing locations are wheelchair accessible. If you need a language interpreter or special assistance, please contact the CPUC’s Public Advisor’s Office (PAO) at the address listed below at least five days in advance of the hearing date.
If you would like to follow this proceeding or any other issue before the CPUC, you may use the CPUC’s free subscription service. Sign up at: http://subscribecpuc.cpuc.ca.gov/.
If you would like to learn how you can participate in this proceeding, or if you have informal comments or questions about the CPUC’s processes, you may access the CPUC’s Public Advisor’s website at www.cpuc.ca.gov/puc and click on “Public Advisor” from the CPUC Information menu. You may also:
Email: public.advisor@cpuc.ca.gov
Mail: Public Advisor’s Office
505 Van Ness Avenue, Room 2103
San Francisco, CA 94102
Call: 1-415-703-2074 or 1-866-849-8390 (toll free)
TTY-1-415-703-5282 or 1-866-836-7825 (toll free)
If you write or email the Public Advisor’s Office, please include the Rulemaking number (R.11-11-007). All informal comments will be available to the Commissioners, the assigned Judge and the CPUC staff. All informal comments are also provided to the CPUC’s Formal Files Office as a part of the file for this proceeding.
